Christmas charity: Maggie’s gives vital support to cancer patients

Maggie’s West London centre offers a bright and positive refuge for cancer patients.

This Christmas, City A.M. is presenting five of its favourite charities to inspire readers' festive charitable giving - our third charity is Maggie's.

Each year 300,000 people in the UK are diagnosed with cancer. What happens thereafter – the questions, the treatment, the hard decisions – not only affect the patient but also their nearest and dearest. Maggie’s offers a safe place and a support structure for cancer patients and their families. Its centres are built within the grounds of NHS hospitals and offer an evidence-based programme, designed to improve physical and emotional wellbeing.

It has been an even bigger year than most for Maggie’s, as it was caught up in a legal battle over the plans for a centre at St Barts Hospital, East London. Just last week it celebrated the resolution of the dispute and will be starting work on its latest centre soon. With 18 centres in total and eight in development, Maggie’s needs our help to continue its great work.

“We rely on voluntary donations to support and grow our network of centres across London and to develop our programme of support,” Chief executive Laura Lee tells us.

“Help us make the biggest difference possible to thousands of people across London who are living with cancer, and their family and friends this Christmas.”